Search form

Search form

China in pushing for more foreign direct investment in the nation's central and western regions. Mining, manufacturing and service industries are all targeted for further development in these areas by the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Commerce, with an emphasis on environmental sustainability and heavy use of labor.

Related Summaries

Foreign direct investment in the Philippines plunged 54.6% in March from a year before, and FDI commitments in the first quarter were down 41.7%. However, the central bank predicts net FDI inflows for the year will reach US$6 billion, up from its November estimate of US$5.3 billion.

Southeast Asian nations are benefiting from Japanese investment that has been channeled away from China over the past two years amid ongoing disputes between the two nations and rising ASEAN consumer markets, according to the Japan External Trade Organization. In 2013, Japanese foreign direct investment in ASEAN countries nearly doubled to ¥2.33 trillion while investment destined for China fell 18% to ¥887 billion.

The Philippines saw 10.9% year-on-year growth in foreign direct investment in the first half of the year, second only to Malaysia's 14.4% among Southeast Asian nations, according to data from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. "This reflected the continued confidence of investors in the Philippine economy on the back of strong macroeconomic fundamentals," the Philippine central bank said in noting a July surge in FDI of 227% from a year before.

Over its latest five-year period, China has boosted foreign direct investment by 34% annually, and the forecast is for US$150 billion in FDI by 2015, according to the Ministry of Commerce. Even so, "last year, China's foreign investment ranked the sixth in the world, and there was still a big gap compared with developed countries," said Chen Runyun, a counselor with the ministry.

Foreign direct investment in China rose 5.65% in March from a year before and is likely to continue rising amid reform efforts, the Ministry of Commerce said. Separately, however, the World Bank and Wall Street banks have been toning down their outlook for Chinese growth this year, citing a slowdown in the first quarter.